Blizzard forces over 5,000 flight cancellations in the Northeast

Screenshot via Weather.com As residents of the Northeast awakened on Tuesday to a heavy snowfall, the region's airports had curtailed operations and airlines had canceled over 5,000 flights.

In the New York area, the blizzard was less severe than forecasted, but by early morning the snowfall had picked up. Teterboro, a regional airport in New Jersey, was closed, but John F. Kennedy International, LaGuardia, and Newark International were all open, although preemptive flight cancellations meant that arrivals and departures were limited.

Nationwide, over 7,000 flights were canceled through Wednesday, according to USA Today.

Airports from Washington, DC to the New England region, all saw their operations reduced by the winter weather.

American Airlines canceled all flights into New York's three airports, Reuters reported. JetBlue also cancelled numerous flights.

"Delta Air Lines canceled 800 flights for Tuesday for New York, Boston and other northeast airports, and United Airlines said it would have no operations at Newark or LaGuardia," Reuters added.

In New York, the expected snowfall fell to 4-8 inches, the New York Times reported, down from the foot or more that had been feared before the storm, a late-season Nor'easter, hit early Tuesday morning.